Hartlepool United captain Luke Waterfall "still struggling" with back injury

The 34-year-old has missed the last two games, although he was deemed fit enough to feature on the bench for Saturday's long trip to Eastleigh and was seen running up and down the Silverlake Stadium after the match.

It's been a mixed season for the veteran defender, who has captained both Lincoln and Grimsby to promotion from the National League in the past. Waterfall was sent off twice in his first four appearances and struggled for form in the opening months of the campaign as Pools slid down the league table. The skipper has shown signs of rediscovering the form that made him such a fan favourite in the second half of last season and has reestablished his formidable partnership with Tom Parkes in the heart of the Pools defence.

However, injuries have plagued Waterfall, who is out of contract in the summer, in recent weeks and the powerful defender has been sidelined for the last two matches. To make his 3-5-2 formation work, Limbrick has used the likes of Dan Dodds, Jack Hunter and David Ferguson in unfamiliar defensive roles, while Billy Sass-Davies, whose opportunities have been restricted under the Australian, made a glaring error in Hampshire last week on just his third start of 2025. Pools will be hoping to have Waterfall back and available for this weekend's visit of Solihull Moors as they bid to end a run of five games without a clean sheet, but Limbrick admitted the defender remains a doubt for Saturday's game.

"Luke Waterfall's still got a sore back," he told BBC Radio Tees Sport.

"It's still an issue for him. He's trained a bit this week and we'll see if he's ready for Saturday. He was available for the bench at the weekend and could have come on if needed but he's still struggling with that."